January 28, 1165
Not bothering to remove his cloak, Falidor collapsed onto the couch and watched as Aldhein prodded the flames in the hearth. "Hello.""Hello yourself," the other man replied, giving one of the logs a last nudge and placing the poker at the side of the fireplace. "Is everything all right over at his lordship's castle?"
Falidor nodded; for a selfish second, he wished he could have done otherwise. "He didn't send me. I came on my own accord; I need a favor."
Frowning, Aldhein took a seat next to him. "From me?""Well, I don't imagine his grace would be much help in this situation," Falidor muttered bitterly. "It's about my sister."
As if he had mouthed some sort of incantation, the room fell silent. The fire no longer crackled; the breeze outside was still. Falidor wasn't even if sure if his companion was still breathing. A few lifeless minutes passed before Aldhein finally spoke. "Nora?"
Falidor shook his head. "Alsina."
Aldhein's eyes flickered toward the fire, as though he was suddenly envious of the logs upon which it wreaked its havoc. "What about her?"
God, how to begin? He wasn't even sure he wanted to explain; anything he said to Aldhein, he would then have to admit to himself. "Well... I'm not sure on all the details. She didn't want to talk to me about it, so I only heard it second-hand from Nora. Apparently, she got into some sort of situation that left her with a little... reminder."The other man considered this, his brow furrowing. "The sort of 'reminder' that emerges about nine months later?"
"Exactly."
Aldhein drummed his fingers across the couch cushion, his knuckles white in the glow of the fire. "My condolences... but I fail to see how this involves me."Falidor sighed. "Well... Alsina wouldn't tell Nora who the man was. All she said was that he was married, and even if he wasn't, she wouldn't want to marry him anyway. I don't even have any idea who it could've been; with everything that's been going on in the kingdom lately, I can't imagine she would have had much opportunity to steal away with anyone without me or any of our siblings knowing."
"Kids these days."
"Indeed," groaned Falidor, fiddling with his wedding band as he remembered his own thoughtless, youthful excursion that had ended up becoming a life-altering tragedy. "Anyway, the last thing Nora needs is to take care of Alsina's baby, and Ailede won't let me take her in because she thinks she'll be a bad influence on Riala and Maddie..."Aldhein raised an eyebrow. "A little rich, coming from a woman who made a cuckold of you at least twice."
"That's what I said, but you know she never listens to me. But I have to find Alsina somewhere to stay, and I was thinking... you know, you're a bachelor, and you make a decent wage, so maybe--"
Aldhein silenced him with a cold glance. "Out of the question."Falidor tapped his foot against the stone floor. "Why? Pregnant girl not good enough for you? I was really hoping that I wouldn't have to play the 'you had a baby with the queen' card, but..."
"Her baby has nothing to do with it," the other man insisted, lifting himself from the couch and staring into the hearth. "Look, I've met your sister, and she's just a kid; she's far too young to be married."
Maybe he had a bias here, but Falidor wasn't sure that was a sufficient excuse. "Evaleith is younger, and she's been married for two months now."
"To a man not much older than herself, you might add," Aldhein insisted. "For all I know, I could have children Alsina's age."
Falidor leapt to his feet in protest. So far as he knew, this was Alsina's only hope, and he did not wish to further fail her as a brother by letting Aldhein refuse so easily. "You're only thirty!""And she's only fifteen."
"Closer to sixteen, actually--and if she's old enough to have a baby, she's old enough to have someone to keep a roof over her head and food on her table."
Aldhein shook his head. "A lifetime with me seems too harsh a punishment for one lapse in judgment."
"Well, can you think of any other options?" Falidor demanded, nearing the end of his rope.
"I suppose you could always man up, tell your wife where to stick it, and help your sister yourself."
Not sure how to respond to that, Falidor shifted his gaze to a fly on the mantle. The stupid insect took flight, then dove into the flames, going up in smoke like that last of Falidor's hopes. "Aldhein... she's scared and confused and people are going to start judging her. She needs someone to take care of her."Aldhein crossed his arms. "Don't try to appeal to my non-existent good side."
He had failed her. "My baby sister..."
I'm so sorry, Alsina.
"Falidor?"
Falidor looked up to see Aldhein take a small step toward him. "Look, am I really the only man you can think of for your sister? Do you seriously not know any bachelors who might not be rich men if they had a penny for every woman they'd wronged?""Just my brother-in-law," he answered dully, "and the only reason he's never wronged that many women is because he's so horrible that none can stomach the thought of him."
"I see."
Aldhein turned around, raising his hand to his chin. Falidor watched him for a few seconds, until he finally glanced over his shoulder and sighed. "I'll make you a deal. If you get the hell out of here and stop bothering me, then maybe I'll think about it--maybe."
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